Deep Breath was the first episode of the eighth series of Doctor Who produced by BBC Wales. After a brief cameo in The Day of the Doctor and a short appearance at the end of The Time of the Doctor, this episode marks the full first appearance of Peter Capaldi as the Twelfth Doctor. It also saw the final appearance of Matt Smith as the Eleventh Doctor in a surprise cameo set directly before his regeneration.
Following the success of the theatrical simulcast of The Day of the Doctor on 23 November 2013, this premiere episode also received a release, simultaneous with its broadcast on television, in cinemas across the world.
Synopsis
Shortly after regenerating the Doctor arrives in Victorian London, bringing with him a dinosaur which runs rampant in the Thames. Soon after he discovers a spate of deadly spontaneous combustions. Meanwhile, Clara struggles to embrace the new man the Doctor has become.
Plot
Late Victorian London. A Tyrannosaurus is rampaging in the River Thames much to the shock of onlookers, with the exception of the Paternoster Gang. Jenny notices the beast has something lodged in its throat before it coughs up the TARDIS, which lands upright on the banks of the river. Madame Vastra gives a policeman a bagful of devices which will keep the dinosaur in one place, before she, Jenny and Strax descend to the bank. Strax knocks on the door and the newly regenerated Doctor appears, shooshing him and telling him that he thinks he has escaped the dinosaur, before leaving the TARDIS and refamiliarising himself with the Gang - albeit poorly due to his post-regenerative confusion. After failing to identify his companions and complaining that Vastra's sonic shields are giving his "lady friend" (the dinosaur) a headache, the Doctor suggests that everyone "take five" before passing out. The Gang learns from Clara that this strange man is indeed the Doctor, and Vastra comments "Here we go again...".
Back at Vastra's house, the Doctor is conscious again and dressed in a Victorian nightshirt, but hyperactive and puzzled by the bedroom he's in, demanding to know its purpose during waking hours. He is also annoyed about the accent Jenny and Clara speak with, as his accent is now Scottish. Vastra, however, talks "properly" by adopting a Scottish accent which pleases the Doctor, before using a psychic link to trick him into sleep. Clara is more troubled by the fact that the Doctor's new face looks old and different when compared to how young he was in his last incarnation. Meanwhile the Tyrannosaurus is making moaning sounds in the city; the Doctor then seems to be translating the moans in his sleep, perhaps also echoing his own situation. Strax comes in and escorts Clara to Madame Vastra, who asked to have a word with her.
Outside on the street, people are still looking at the giant dinosaur. A man called Alf guesses the Tyrannosaurus is part of a government plan, in conversation with his wife. Alf then says to a mysterious man there is something wrong with the dinosaur's neck, that makes it look unreal. The man replies that Alf has good eyes, and he needs them as a gift to replace his bad eyes. He reveals the other side of his face - it looks like a clockwork robot - and then proceeds to remove Alf's eyes.
Vastra, who is now wearing her veil, questions Clara about how she and the Doctor came to be in Victorian London after Trenzalore. When Clara asks why Vastra has put on her veil, she is told she wears it to be accepted because of her inhuman appearance. The conversation escalates as Clara thinks Vastra is judging her, but Vastra retorts by implying that Clara is judging the Doctor because he is no longer the handsome young man she met. Eventually Clara explodes, insisting she not be judged - only to be applauded by Jenny and Vastra for finally showing her true colours. Vastra explains that the Doctor needs all of them - especially Clara - as anchors to find himself again. When Clara realizes that Vastra has removed her veil, she wonders when that happened; "When you stopped noticing it" is the answer.
Upstairs, the Doctor wakes up smelling something. After sniffing about on the floor, he finds a piece of chalk. He writes calculations with the chalk around the whole room, including on the walls and floor. He then escapes through the window to check on the dinosaur (the door being "Boring. Not me"). Shouting across London at the dinosaur, he apologises that his time machine got stuck in its throat and vows to get it home safely. Just as he says that, it spontaneously bursts into flames and is killed, prompting the Doctor to action. He races to the edge of the roof and jumps, landing in a tree.
Falling from the tree and getting stuck on a branch, he stops a horse and carriage and asks that he will need to relieve him of his "pet", much to the driver's confusion. The Doctor replies that he was talking to the horse. Jumping onto the horse, he uses the Sonic Screwdriver to cut the ropes linking the horse to the carriage. As the Doctor struggles to properly control the horse, the Paternoster Gang and Clara unknowingly follow him. The Doctor arrives at the bridge and quietly observes as the dinosaur burns in the flames. Clara questions the Doctor's sudden appearance here. As Vastra locks the carriage like a car remote, she begins to question who would do such a thing. The Doctor points out that that's not the real question, nor is "how". The real question is: "Have there been any similar murders?" Vastra admits that there have been many similar ones. The Doctor then points out a man who seems unmoved by the situation, unlike the other onlookers, before jumping into the water. Clara worries that he'll drown, but Vastra doubts it, claiming that the Doctor has taken up the case.
Clara wakes up the next morning and discovers Strax threatening workers with their lives when they return with the TARDIS. Strax informs Clara he had it brought here because the Doctor will always come looking for his time machine and takes it too far when he says that once he returns, they'll melt him with acid. Clara asks for 'The Times' newspaper to be sent up to her. Strax immediately throws the paper up to Clara, striking her in the face and knocking her down.
Now in a Victorian dress, Clara makes her way downstairs and meets Jenny, who warns her not to disturb Vastra as she is investigating other cases - including having a poisoner for dinner (literally). Clara encounters Strax once again, who offers her water. Clara at first accepts, but then declines when Strax gives her the bucket of water he has been using to mop the floor (and had previously bathed in). Strax then gives her an unexpected medical examination, while also peeking inside her head and seeing what she's thinking.
In a dirty alley somewhere, the Doctor examines his face in a small mirror and rummages through debris. As a disheveled old man stumbles by, the Doctor is confused over why he now has this face. Ranting and belligerent, he asks the man's input on why he gave himself this face, noting that it is somehow familiar to him. The Doctor asks the confused and frightened man if he has seen the Doctor's face before, which the old man indicates he has not. Intimidated by it, he says he doesn't like the Doctor's face, which the Doctor doesn't seem to fond of, either, due to a new, potent set of eyebrows that seem like they want to cede from the rest of his face and "set up their own independent state of eyebrows". Playing along with his madness, the old man agrees he has mighty eyebrows. The Doctor then notes that he has a Scottish accent, which the man confirms. The Doctor rants on that he can now complain about things, before demanding the man's coat. The man whimpers in fear, until the Doctor brings up a newspaper, showing the article 'Fourth Case of Spontaneous Combustion'.
Jenny is posing, supposedly for a painting for Vastra, but discovers her wife is working on a map of the various deaths. Not surprisingly, she isn't impressed, and Vastra is hard-pressed to explain herself when Clara barges in. There's a notice in the paper addressed to the "Impossible Girl" - the Doctor's nickname for her. Unfortunately, it doesn't say where to meet. After some work, Clara figures it out by looking at the opposite side of the page; it's a restaurant called Mancini's.
Clara arrives at the restaurant and is soon joined by the Doctor, now wearing the tramp's coat. The two talk calmly, with the Doctor noting that whoever put an ad in the paper as a message (instead of sending a note) is an egomaniac. Clara accepts this as an apology but the Doctor thought he was referring to her. They argue before realizing that neither of them placed the ad. While Clara is upset over the Doctor's words, the Doctor is more interested in their surroundings. He makes Clara look at the diners and notice how they are mechanically cutting food and bringing silverware to their mouths - but not actually eating anything. The Doctor then uses a hair from his head, then Clara's, to test the atmosphere, and realizes the diners are not breathing either. The two stand up to leave, only for every diner in unison to rise and block them off, forcing them to sit again. A waiter comes over to scan the Doctor with an advanced gadget and recite various body parts. Clara wonders why such things would be on the menu, but the Doctor informs her they are the menu. He reaches up to remove the waiter's face, revealing a mechanical form underneath. He presses the face to Clara's own to show her - to her horror - that it's an actual human face. The waiter locks the two down into their chairs as the booth lowers itself into a tunnel.
Finding themselves in a chamber below the restaurant, the Doctor manages to get his sonic screwdriver out, which Clara painfully kicks into his lap. He uses it to free them, Clara asking why the screwdriver isn't voice-activated and then realizes the Doctor forgot it is. They make their way to a chamber and find the half-faced Droid from before sitting in a chair. Around him are pods containing other droids, all dressed and resembling real Londoners. Examining the Droid, the Doctor realizes it's recharging and this is not a case of a man building himself into a cyborg - but a robot who adds human flesh to himself! The restaurant is their way of capturing random humans to harvest their flesh and organs for themselves. The spontaneous combustion is their way of killing the victims quickly to hide the evidence of mutilation, including the dinosaur.
The Droid begins to awaken and the Doctor and Clara start to run. A door slides closed between them, Clara begging the Doctor to let her in but the Doctor shocks her by saying it's better they're not both captured and leaves her behind. Clara remembers the Doctor saying that the robots don't breathe and holds her breath as she tries to walk to the exit. She nearly makes it but eventually is forced to take a breath and passes out, remembering taunts from her unruly pupils in the past.
Waking up, Clara is confronted by the Droid, who demands to know where the Doctor is. She asks why he killed the dinosaur and is told it was to harvest its optic nerve. Clara realizes that the Droid was specific, knowing exactly what a dinosaur's organs were like, and asks how old it is. The Droid states that they have been working for millions of years to rebuild themselves over and over, all in search of "the Promised Land." It threatens to kill Clara but she remains strong and defiant despite her obvious fear.
When it asks once more where the Doctor is, Clara replies that if the Doctor is still the Doctor, he will be right behind her and extends her hand behind her. She whispers for him to be there and suddenly, one of the robots grabs her hand. He pulls her back before peeling off his mask to reveal himself as the Doctor in a new suit who thanks the "Rubbish robots from the dawn of time" for "all the gratuitous information." He places his sonic screwdriver into the charger, warning the Droid he will blow the entire room if he sees one thing he doesn't like "and that includes karaoke and mimes." Clara is still upset over being left behind as the Doctor states he's not really sorry about that. The Droid asks why they are there and the Doctor replies because of the ad in the paper. The Droid's confusion makes the Doctor and Clara realize he didn't place the ad, with the Doctor hugely embarrassed at his blunder. He tells Clara to "say the word" and with reluctance, she touches her brooch, which lights up as they both intone "Geronimo." From a hole in the ceiling, Vastra and Jenny (in leather catsuits) twirl down attached to curtains with Strax falling behind them.
Vastra reports the restaurant has been cleansed "with maximum prejudice" and the police summoned. The Droid calls in more robots as the Doctor states that killing isn't their way. Clara protests that the restaurant is a slaughterhouse and the Doctor shrugs that it's no different than any other restaurant. The Droid declares they are in search of the Promised Land but the Doctor snaps that after millions of years, he should know it doesn't exist. The Droid makes his way to the booth elevator and rises up with the Doctor holding its bottom while Vastra, Jenny and Strax fight the other robots.
The police are in the restaurant, stunned at its mess when the Droid informs them it is closed, showing off his flame-thrower arm. The police leave, the head detective declaring the restaurant off limits to anyone before ordering one of the constables to get reinforcements. The Doctor is sitting at a table, pouring a drink into a glass. He tells the Droid he is afraid he is going to have to kill him and offers it a drink first. The Droid moves to a control panel with the Doctor following and observing the controls. The Doctor states there is no way to escape, the Droid stating that the escape pod is there. The Doctor insists the pod cannot have enough power but the restaurant shakes. As the police outside stare in shock, the restaurant rises up, lifted by a hot air balloon made up of human skin. Below, the rest of the group continues to fight the robots, who keep rising up after stabs and laser blasts.
The Doctor examines a control button that had fallen off while sniffing at flowers. He sees that this pod belonged to the SS Marie Antoinette, sister ship to the SS Madame de Pompadour, but despite how familiar it all is, he cannot place it exactly. The Doctor realizes that the ship fell through time, crashing in England millions of years earlier, the only survivors the service robots who began their cycle of repairing themselves over. He tells the Droid to look out the window at London, the Droid noting how small the city is but the Doctor responds that humans are never small to him and he will fight for them. The Droid continues to talk on the need to find "the Promised Land" as the Doctor rails on him for the fact that he's rebuilt himself countless times but has lost any semblance of humanity he once had, comparing him to a broom that is broken and rebuilt but still not the same broom. He holds up a silver plate to say the Droid does not even know where he got that face from. As the Droid stares at his reflection, the Doctor does the same. He finishes by saying that he knows that killing this Droid will stop all the others and will do so for Earth. They struggle at the window as below, the Gang are overwhelmed by the robots. Clara suggests they hold their breaths, the robots freezing as they do. It's too much for Jenny, Vastra giving her wife a long kiss to share oxygen. Just as Strax is about to pass out, all the robots collapse. Above, the Droid is shown impaled on the spire of Big Ben as the Doctor looks out, his expression grim.
The Gang return to Vastra's home to find that the Doctor and the TARDIS have both vanished. Later, Clara (back in her modern clothing) asks Vastra if she's got a vacancy since it looks like she's stuck in Victorian times, but Vastra assures her he'll be back. She's proven true as the TARDIS returns, telling Clara "Give him hell; he'll always need it."
Clara finds the interior changed, with a lighter shade of mood lighting in the time rotor and some furniture about. The Doctor admits he's not sure about the new look himself after Clara says she doesn't like it. The Doctor talks to Clara on how he is over two thousand years old and has made many mistakes and "it's about time I did something about it." He tells her that he is not her boyfriend, which she interprets as her being at fault, until the Doctor addresses that it wasn't her mistake.
The Doctor puts the TARDIS in flight, takes a step back, and partially unbuttons his new suit jacket, exposing a flashy red lining inside to show off his new look to Clara. She grins in approval, and then the Doctor gets right to business, wondering how she got the TARDIS telephone number. Clara asks who put the ad in the paper and the Doctor reminds her of the woman in the shop long ago who gave her a line to a computer help line that instead connected her to the TARDIS. It seems someone wants the two together and maybe they should find out who.
The TARDIS lands, and the Doctor wonders how Clara feels about staying on as that mystery woman seems to want. Clara, still having mixed feelings at this new incarnation of the Doctor, is unsure if she wants to stay his companion, convincing herself she doesn't think she knows him anymore. Once she says that, her phone rings, and the Doctor teasingly suggests she should get that call, because it might be her boyfriend. Staring away from the Doctor, she bitterly urges him to shut up because she doesn't have a boyfriend, and walks out of the TARDIS to take the call in private.
Clara walks out of the TARDIS in modern times to answer the call, and hears the voice of the Eleventh Doctor. He explains he's calling through time from Trenzalore just minutes before his regeneration. Clara, remembering how she found the TARDIS telephone dangling off the hook from the call box, is shocked to the point of tears from hearing from him again as he says that the man before her is still him - just changed. Holding back her tears, Clara asks him why he would do this. The Eleventh Doctor explains that he's phoning her because he thinks this regeneration "is gonna be a whopper", and that if she's afraid, the new Doctor will be even more so and needs her help to handle all this. She should not be afraid, for his sake. The Eleventh and Twelfth Doctors respond to each other, both asking if it's the Doctor on the line. When he hears the voice of his future self, the previous Doctor groans over "turning old", which makes Clara laugh, as she also indirectly confirms his hair will be gray as well. He's not at all impressed at the discovery that he'll have gray hair, knowing how young he was in his soon-to-change appearance, but braces for the change with an endearing smile as he looks forward toward more adventures with his impossible girl. The Eleventh Doctor says a final goodbye to Clara before he hangs up and meets up with his Clara to regenerate.
As Clara realises the Doctor had planned this to help her cope with him regenerating, the current Doctor comes to her and says he remembers the call - after all, he made it - and that what he (as the Eleventh Doctor) had said is still true, and asks her in person if she will help him. Upset that she's looking right through him but doesn't view him as the same person, the Doctor begs, "Just see me." Clara walks up to the Doctor and gives him a good look over, and when she concentrates on his eyes, she recognises him as the Doctor - her Doctor - and beams, thanking him for phoning from the past. Clara hugs him, which the Doctor says that in his current incarnation isn't his thing, looking a bit confused and wondering where he should put his hands, but she's unsure he's entitled to a vote. Clara offhandedly says they're not at her home, and the Doctor apologizes that he missed. He reveals they're in Glasgow, Clara pointing out he'll fit in with the accent and they go off in search of chips and coffee...with the Doctor revealing Clara will have to pay for them as he has no money. However, she thinks he's the fetching sort. Although the Doctor is willing to debate this, Clara still isn't sure he should get a vote. The pair stroll off together in search of coffee, the Doctor still hesitant.
The Droid awakens in a beautiful garden, replaces his top hat on his head, and meets Missy, a mysterious woman who claims the Doctor is her boyfriend and that she likes his new accent. Helping it up she asks whether he fell from the balloon or was pushed out. The Droid then asks where he is. She tells him that he has reached the "Promised Land" at last. The woman grandly introduces his new home, "Welcome... to Heaven". She chomps her teeth fatuously, then begins prancing and twirling around an ornate fountain with an umbrella in hand...
Cast
- The Doctor - Peter Capaldi
- Clara - Jenna Coleman
- Madame Vastra - Neve McIntosh
- Strax - Dan Starkey
- Jenny - Catrin Stewart
- Half-Face Man - Peter Ferdinando
- Inspector Gregson - Paul Hickey
- Alf - Tony Way
- Elsie - Maggie Service
- Cabbie - Mark Kempner
- Barney - Brian Miller
- Waiter - Graham Duff
- Courtney - Ellis George
- Policeman - Peter Hannah
- Footman - Paul Kasey
- Missy - Michelle Gomez
- and Matt Smith as The Doctor
Crew
| Executive Producers Steven Moffat and Brian Minchin |
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| Not every person who worked on this adventure was credited. The absence of a credit for a position doesn't necessarily mean the job wasn't required. The information above is based solely on observations of the actual end credits of the episodes as broadcast, and does not relay information from IMDB or other sources. |
References
- The Doctor accidentally brings Clara to Glasgow (in real life, Peter Capaldi's home town) instead of back to London.
- In his confusion, the Doctor thinks Clara is a regenerated Handles (and isn't impressed). He also thinks that Strax is one of the Seven Dwarfs from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, calling him "Sneezy", "Bashful", "Dopey" and, finally, "Grumpy".
- Vastra claims she hasn't seen dinosaurs since she was a little girl.
- When the Doctor is in the alleyway talking to the vagrant, he comments on the cold, saying he should get a long scarf, then immediately dismisses the idea. This is a reference to the Fourth Doctor's iconic garb.
- Clara had a difficult time controlling her pupils in her first days as a teacher in Coal Hill School.
- The Doctor has a hard time remembering the events of The Girl in the Fireplace because of his post-regenerative confusion, and sniffs roses while trying to remember (a reference to Rose Tyler, who was travelling with him at the time).
- Madame Vastra uses a Scottish accent (in reality, Neve McIntosh's own) to try and calm the newly-regenerated Doctor. Vastra normally speaks with a slight Scottish accent, but she exaggerates it for the Doctor's benefit.
- As Clara is struggling to reach for the sonic screwdriver with her legs, the Doctor remarks that he misses the long-legged Amy.
- The Doctor's speech to the Half-Face Man about the broom is a reference to the famous thought experiment, Theseus' paradox. The paradox is more famously known in popular culture due to an episode of Only Fools and Horses where the character Trigger receives an award for using the same broom for twenty years despite having used seventeen new heads and fourteen new handles.
- The same thought experiment may also be applied to the Doctor's regenerations (Doctor Who and Philosophy). When the Doctor references Theseus' Paradox, he's holding a two-sided reflective plate, showing both his own reflection and that of the Half-Face Man.
- There are several references and allusions to Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories, which were previously revealed as being based on Madame Vastra's exploits (TV: The Snowmen):
- In this episode, Inspector Gregson helps the Paternoster Gang. Inspector Gregson is a character from A Study in Scarlet.
- The Paternoster Gang uses 'Paternoster Irregulars' to find the Doctor. Sherlock Holmes used a similar organisation, the Baker Street Irregulars.
- After discovering the advertisement, Madame Vastra exclaims, "The game is afoot!". These words are from The Adventure of the Abbey Grange, and remain one of Holmes' best-known phrases.
- At one point, Jenny mentions 'the Conk-Singleton forgery case' and 'the Camberwell poisoning case'. Both cases are referred to in the Canon.
- At another point, Vastra is shown reading the agony column, a frequent habit of Sherlock Holmes'. Vastra, however, is unimpressed by this trend.
- According to Vastra, the Doctor founded a music band with Marcus Aurelius as bass guitar player; she describes the Emperor as a "superlative" player.
The Doctor
- The Doctor enhances the TARDIS control room with furnishings such as a chalkboard, bookshelves, and a recliner. He also changes the cold blue neon piping in the time rotor to a warmer amber. He admits, however, that he's not sure about the redecoration. In particular, he misses "the round things" but can't remember where he put them.
- The Doctor once again has a Scottish accent, an accent he hasn't naturally had since his seventh incarnation. He says this gives him an excuse to complain about things - a joke about how the Scottish are usually stereotyped as being quite the complainers.
- After seeing his new face in a mirror for the first time, the Doctor wonders why it seems so familiar - another in-joke, referring this time to Capaldi's previous role in The Fires of Pompeii. It might also refer to the fact that he saw himself in the mirror in the bedroom where he was supposed to sleep (and was horrified).
- The Doctor's new eyebrows also annoy him, and he complains that they seem like they want to cede from the rest of his face and "set up their own independent state of eyebrows". This may be an in-joke reference to the (unsuccessful) Scottish independence referendum, which was scheduled to take place the following month. It may also refer to the Third Doctor's comment on how the natives of Delphon communicate with their eyebrows (TV: Spearhead from Space).
- Suspecting (correctly) that Clara would have a hard time coming to terms with his next incarnation, the Eleventh Doctor quickly comes up with a plan to help her cope. Shortly before regenerating, he phones Clara further on in his own timeline to ask her to help him as he gets used to his new body. After the call, the current Doctor asks her in person if she'll help him.
- The Doctor warns Madame Vastra against creating a psychic link with him, claiming his mind is so powerful it would feel like a piano falling on her head. However, he proves vulnerable to a "sleep" suggestion from her - probably because of his severe post-regenerative disorientation.
- The Doctor declares he doesn't like karaoke or mimes.
Species
- Silurians have a greater lung capacity than humans, and are able to participate in psychic links with Time Lords.
Culture
- The Doctor describes his and Clara's situation in the restaurant as "Sweeney Todd without the pies".
- Clara likens the body-part harvesting to an alien version of Burke and Hare, the notorious 19th-century bodysnatchers who turned to murder to ensure an ongoing supply for the medical schools.
Story notes
Common among all versions
- The story's premier broadcast date, 23 August, is the same date as the in-universe setting of The Fires of Pompeii, in which Peter Capaldi made his first appearance in Doctor Who as Lobus Caecilius.
- Matt Smith's cameo was recorded during the filming of The Time of the Doctor, as confirmed by Steven Moffat in several interviews following the preview screenings.
- Moffat joked that Matt's return was the fastest return ever, considering the fact that he last appeared in the previous episode. Indeed, disregarding recaps, the Second Doctor momentarily seeing an image of the First Doctor in TV: The Power of the Daleks, and the special case of the 1996 TV movie, this marks the first time a former Doctor has made a substantial appearance in the very first episode of his successor's era.
- This episode (and its script) was leaked online when stored on a publically-accessible server, with incomplete CGI, watermarks and timecodes in black-and-white, prompting a plea from BBC Worldwide not to watch it. The rough cut held the nomenclature, "Prepared for Marcelo Camargo at Drei Marc".
- The BBC gave this episode a world tour in seven countries over twelve days.
- No shots of the TARDIS interior are shown before the reveal of its redesign, due to the permanent remodeling of certain parts in the control room for Peter Capaldi's Doctor, which would make the replication of the pre-redecorated console highly tasking.
- During the read-through of the script for this episode (seen in TV:Doctor Who Extra), the cast and crewmembers filled the room with laughter when Peter Capaldi reached the lines ridiculing his eyebrows.
- The read-through was also the first time that Capaldi and Jenna Coleman had worked together, as Capaldi had been secretly auditioned.
- Near the day of filming where Capaldi's official costume would be seen in public for the first time, the BBC released an official publicity shot to deter a press leak.
- Digital raindrop removal was used in the scene where Clara and the Doctor emerged in Glasgow (actually Cardiff), since it was a brisk, overcast day that saw a small downpour during filming. Jenna and Peter used insulated coats to stay warm when they were not in the middle of filming.
- The role of Barney the tramp was played by Brian Miller, the husband of the late Elisabeth Sladen, who had previously appeared in TV: Snakedance.
- This is the first episode in the new series to premiere in August.
- This is the first episode since the first episode in the The Leisure Hive story to premiere in August.
The Hanshaw Title Sequence
- This episode saw the debut of a new title sequence designed by Billy Hanshaw after executive producer Steven Moffat saw a video of his conceptual Doctor Who titles sequence on YouTube and decided to draft him aboard to do a professional version of his sequence. The new titles features a vast expanse of golden-bronze clock gears whizzing by in empty space, and then the TARDIS flying through a tunnel of Roman numeral clock face numbers spiraling into a literal depiction of a time vortex with glowing engravings of circular Gallifreyan. The TARDIS passes across the screen in a way very similar to the Series 1 title sequence as the TARDIS jumped from the blue to red time vortex, and then launches past a group of planets. Peter Capaldi's piercing eyes are shown, rather than a full insert of the actor's face.
- Moffat explained in an interview, "I happened across it [the title sequence], and it was the only new title idea I'd seen since 1963. We got in touch with him, and said, 'OK, we're going to do that one.'" Billy Hanshaw responded, "I had to pinch myself because I didn't know if it was really happening. It's one of those stories about people putting something on YouTube - it's usually a musician this happens to. They put a performance on there and they get picked up by a label. It's a similar kind of story. I thought, these things don't generally happen."[1]
Specific to theatrical presentation
- A five-minute "prequel" was shown before this episode,[2] consisting of a specially recorded scene similar to the Strax Field Reports, featuring the Paternoster Gang: Vastra, Jenny Flint, and Strax. The scene primarily focused on Strax humourously describing the first twelve incarnations of the Doctor, making note of the War Doctor as well as the Tenth Doctor's aborted regeneration, to his people, before alerting them to the appearance of the latest Doctor. He also made fun of the Ninth Doctor's ears and the Eleventh Doctor's chin.
- The first installment of Doctor Who Extra, a new documentary series conceived as a smaller scale replacement for the former Doctor Who Confidential, which was cancelled by BBC Three, ending with Series 6. Otherwise exclusive to BBC iPlayer, this initial installment was screened to participating cinemas following the showing of Deep Breath and focused on both the production of this episode and Peter Capaldi's inauguration as the Twelfth Doctor. It was subsequently also made available on YouTube.
- Doctor Who Extra was in turn followed by a live Q & A in London, hosted by Zoe Ball with Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, and Steven Moffat. Reportedly due to transmission problems a number of cinemas were unable to screen this. This feature was only shown at screenings that occurred in the UK on 23rd August 2014. Later theatrical screenings of the episode in Canada, the US and elsewhere only featured the prequel and Extra.
Ratings
6.8 million overnight[3]
Filming locations
The Maltings, Pontprennau
Mount Stuart Square, Cardiff
Queen Street, Cardiff
Production errors
- The end of Vastra's mask is visible during the opening scenes.
- The Doctor's hair is noticeably shorter than in TV: The Time of the Doctor.
- When the Doctor is in bed, Jenny walks to the window and looks up to see the dinosaur. But in the next shot, the T-Rex is clearly at eye-level.
- When the Half-Face Man wakes up in "Heaven", he clearly has a left brow, despite him only having a right half of a face.
- The dinosaur slime that covers the TARDIS appears to disappear from the door when the scene shifts to show Strax knocking.
- While dressed in his nightshirt, the Doctor is only seen to be holding his sonic screwdriver once (when using it to break the horse's harness after landing on its back). Victorian nightshirts don't have pockets, and the screwdriver would almost certainly have fallen out of a pocket as he falls through the tree outside Vastra's house. But he has it when he meets Clara at the restaurant in his tramp outfit. So where is it the rest of the time?
- Similarly, the Doctor claims to have traded a watch for his tramp outfit, but it is never seen when he is in his nightshirt. (However, it should be noted that exactly how the Doctor obtained the tramp outfit is never actually confirmed.)
Continuity
- The Cloister Bell is heard as the Doctor collapses on the bank of the River Thames. (TV: Logopolis, Doctor Who, et al.)
- The Doctor often reflects that he finds the current situation of robots harvesting human organs to repair a ship to be naggingly familiar, but his regeneration-addled brain is unable to remember. (TV: The Girl in the Fireplace)
- The Doctor mentions Amy, making reference to her long legs in comparison to the much shorter Clara. (TV: The Impossible Astronaut)
- While performing a physical examination of Clara, Strax makes an observation on her thorax, as did Linx with Sarah Jane Smith (TV: The Time Warrior) and Commander Skorr with Martha Jones. (TV: The Sontaran Stratagem)
- The Doctor wonders who gave Clara the phone number of the TARDIS. (TV: The Bells of Saint John)
- The Doctor is sure he has already seen his new face before, and comments that it has frown lines that he didn't frown. (TV: The Fires of Pompeii)
- Clara learns why the TARDIS telephone was hanging off the hook when she returned to the TARDIS after the Eleventh Doctor began regenerating. Because he did not patch it back to the console unit, the Eleventh Doctor dragged the phone by its cord into the entrance of his console to make a private, final phone call to Clara in the near future. (TV: The Time of the Doctor)
- During his phone call to Clara, the Eleventh Doctor says that his regeneration "is gonna be a whopper." When describing his imminent regeneration to the Daleks on Trenzalore, he said exactly the same thing. (TV: The Time of the Doctor)
- The Twelfth Doctor's claim to speak "Dinosaur" echoes the Eleventh Doctor's claims to speak the languages of horses and babies. However, this claim is not played for laughs, and seems less dubious - especially when considering the Doctor's translation of the stranded dinosaur's lament. (TV: A Town Called Mercy, A Good Man Goes to War, Closing Time)
- The Doctor and Clara say "Geronimo!" as a code word to spring the Paternoster Gang into action, a catchphrase used by the Doctor's previous incarnation. (TV: The End of Time et al.)
- Jenny snaps at Vastra for calling humans monkeys, or apes, as Silurians often have. (TV: Doctor Who and the Silurians, A Good Man Goes to War)
- Strax again mentions using deadly acid as a weapon. (TV: The Crimson Horror)
- When Clara sees the improved console room, she says, "You've redecorated... I don't like it." This was said by both the Second and Tenth Doctors at the sight of new TARDIS console designs. (TV: The Three Doctors, The Day of the Doctor) The Second and Eleventh Doctors have also said this about other rooms. (TV: The Five Doctors, Closing Time)
- The Doctor wishes he had more "round things" in his updated control room. (TV: The Day of the Doctor) He remembers he "had many round things once" and wonders where he put them. (TV: An Unearthly Child onward)
- Clara's last interaction with the Eleventh Doctor takes place on the phone, mirroring the first interaction she had with him as an adult. (TV: The Bells of Saint John)
- The Doctor states that he is now over 2,000 years old. (TV: The Time of the Doctor, PROSE: Tales of Trenzalore: The Eleventh Doctor's Last Stand)
- The Doctor once again confirms that he does not see the human race as "small" (TV: The End of Time, Hide)
- The Doctor remembers that he wore a scarf once. (TV: Robot et al.)
- After the Doctor collapses, Jenny asks Clara who he is and Clara replies that he is the Doctor, mirroring a conversation Rose and Jackie Tyler had after the Tenth Doctor's regeneration. (TV: The Christmas Invasion)
- After seeing the new Doctor, Madame Vastra says "Well then, here we go again.", just as the Brigadier did after the Third Doctor's regeneration. (TV: Planet of the Spiders)
- This line by Madame Vastra suggests that she may have helped a previous Doctor recover from a regeneration. The War and Ninth Doctors are the only candidates, the aftermath of the other Doctors' regenerations having been witnessed. (TV: The Power of the Daleks, et al.)
- Clara recalls her first day working as a teacher in Coal Hill School. (TV: The Day of the Doctor)
- Strax continues to call Clara "boy", as he still has trouble telling male and female genders apart. (TV: The Snowmen, The Crimson Horror)
- According to Strax, Clara is now 27, meaning that she has in fact been traveling with (or, at least, associated with) the Doctor for a few years, as she was only 24 when they first met. (TV: The Bells of Saint John)
- This is the second time that Clara asks the Doctor who Amy is, as she previously did when he referenced her as "Amelia". (TV: The Time of the Doctor) This is despite her having once viewed a photograph of Amy. (TV: Clara and the TARDIS).
- The Doctor wonders where he got his face. Romana deliberately chose her new appearance based on someone she had previously met. (TV: Destiny of the Daleks)
- Clara reveals she had a poster of the philosopher Marcus Aurelius in her room when she was 15. She previously quoted him in her classroom. (TV: The Day of the Doctor)
- A dinosaur whom the Doctor befriends is brutally killed, as happened when "Tricey" was shot by Solomon's robots (TV: Dinosaurs on a Spaceship)
- The Doctor previously took a companion to Scotland accidentally when trying to take her home. (TV: School Reunion) Unlike Sarah Jane Smith, Clara will only wait three weeks for the Doctor to return. (TV: Into the Dalek)
- The reason for the Doctor accidentally bringing a dinosaur with him through time, along with getting the TARDIS stuck in its throat, could very well be because as soon as he regenerated he completely forgot how to fly the TARDIS. (TV: The Time of the Doctor)
- The Doctor had previously encountered persons who were continuously "repaired" for so long that he presumed that there were likely nothing of the original person left. (TV: The Doctor's Wife)
Home video releases
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External links
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